I really need help...

You may or may not be aware, but last weekend my PS2 broke.
I never played it that often (once ever 2 or 3 months, for about a couple of hours at a time), but i miss the idea of it being there.
I recetly saw a demo of the PS3 and thought it looked too "cartoonie" (especially for however many hundred it'll cost me), so i decided i liked the looks of the x-box 360. What better way to celebrate my pay rise than with a purchase of one.
Off i go to Game and stand absolutely perplexed by what's infront of me.
It certainly isn't as easy as it was to buy the PS2 (pick up the box with a controller and a game and go to the counter).
So there i am standing there facing (to begin with) 2 different typed of xbox's!!
I may be wrong but i think one was called "x-box core" and "x-box premium" or something like that. Anyway!
I'm standing there looking at these boxes and i'm baffled: -

xbox live 12 month membership - "do i want to play online? will it cost me extra, like the old dial up connections for the net?"

xbox live 3 month membership - "if i do want to play online...will i want it for longer than 3 months...hang on, does this even mean i get to play on line?!"

XBOX WIRELESS CONTROLLER - "It's got batteries? Will they run out...why don't i have the bastarding option of getting one WITH cables in this box?!"

XBOX WIRELESS HEADSET - "WTF am i gonna do with a headset?!"

XBOX 20 GIG HARD DRIVE - "20 GIG? Is that gonna be way too much? This other one has only got a few hundred mb hard drive...why would i need 20 gig?"

XBOX LIVE VISION CAMERA - "f*** off! A webcam, is that? I'm playing games, am i really gonna be wanting to see pictures of who i'm playing in the bottom of my screen?!"

XBOX UNIVERSAL MEDIA REMOTE - "Oh good. I can turn my tele on and off with another remote control."

These things go on forever.
Guys, i really need your help.
I mean, do i want to go online and play games?
How do i know what the best system is. This has all changed and i'd love it if someone could simplify things for me.

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Right the Simple thing to do, is buy the Premium Xbox, I say this because you will need a Hard Disk to save things, if you get the premium you also have the optional cables you will need and a wireless controller...

You can always decide whether you can justify playing online, its good but not essential...

But, do i want a 20 gig HD?
I mean, games surely don't take up that much space, do they? [/b]

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Premium come with 20GB as standard and really you do need it, otherwise you will be buying memory cards, also if you wanna download content like demo's from marketplace you will need somewhere to store it... Also if you wanna listen to your own music you transfer that accross...

And now, let us take a voyage of discovery through each and every one of your noob-ile questions:

xbox live 12 month membership - "do i want to play online? will it cost me extra, like the old dial up connections for the net?"[/b]

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If you have ADSL at your flat, and you want to play online then do it. Games for the xbox 360 like Project Gotham Racing, Dead or Alive 4 and Ghost Recon are designed for playing online in fact, so you'd be silly not to.

Future versions of EA Rugby for games consoles will have a play online facility if it hasn't got it already.

Also xbox live gives you access to the Xbox live marketplace. Here you can purchase games to download onto your hard drive (kind of like buying a game in town, only you're doing it from your couch instead). Furthermore you can download extra content like new levels, weapons, etc for your games from the marketplace. Finally it is envisaged (if not happening already) that you'll be able to buy and download movies and music from Xbox live marketplace.

xbox live 3 month membership - "if i do want to play online...will i want it for longer than 3 months...hang on, does this even mean i get to play on line?!"[/b]

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Yes, it does, it just means you'll have access for three months before asking to cough up for a full subscription.

XBOX WIRELESS CONTROLLER - "It's got batteries? Will they run out...why don't i have the bastarding option of getting one WITH cables in this box?!"[/b]

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Unless they're nuclear batteries (which, if they are, STEP AWAY FROM THE CONTROLLERS!), yet they will need recharging. They are just simple AA batteries man, no sweat.

If you want my opinion? Don't be a fool man and go with the Wireless controllers, very easy to use with the console, trust me, even John Stalker's dog can do it.

XBOX WIRELESS HEADSET - "WTF am i gonna do with a headset?!"[/b]

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Use it on Xbox live when you play online of course! All Xbox 360 games have to have the ability to voice chat online while you play online. So, when you get the next EA Rugby, you'll be able to taunt your opponents online in real time using a really stereotypical Northern Welsh accent! Isn't it!

XBOX 20 GIG HARD DRIVE - "20 GIG? Is that gonna be way too much? This other one has only got a few hundred mb hard drive...why would i need 20 gig?"[/b]

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Actually, if you want to download games, movies and the like, 20 gig is TINY. There is such an uproar about fans wanting to use their Xbox 360 to play downloaded movies on their nice and shiny HDTVs that Microsoft are going to release bigger hard drives soon, something like 80 gig or even 120 gig!

The hard drive is where you download the games that you might want to buy off of Xbox Live, extra content for the games that you own (like new levels, characters, weapons, cars, stuff like that).

XBOX LIVE VISION CAMERA - "f*** off! A webcam, is that? I'm playing games, am i really gonna be wanting to see pictures of who i'm playing in the bottom of my screen?!"[/b]

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Don't worry, this isn't a requirement, if it comes with the premium, you don't have to use it. Also, you can turn off the option of seeing SANZAR playing in his boxer shorts down in Bok-town.

XBOX UNIVERSAL MEDIA REMOTE - "Oh good. I can turn my tele on and off with another remote control."[/b]

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If you want to use your Xbox 360 as a DVD player, 'fraid so mate. Also, if you download any movies or music, you use that as well with the Xbox 360's media player.

xbox live 12 month membership - "do i want to play online? will it cost me extra, like the old dial up connections for the net?"
* Have you played on a multiplayer online game before? PC or similar?* The Gold live account will allow you to play games online & allow you to download game demo's & other content via Marketplace (A Hard Drive or Memory Card is needed)* The Gold Live Account costs around Â£40 which will last you 12 months* The Silver Live account is free, but you are restricted to only create a user profile, join on message boards, as well as access Xbox Live Arcade (Download retro games) and Marketplace and talk to other members.

xbox live 3 month membership - "if i do want to play online...will i want it for longer than 3 months...hang on, does this even mean i get to play on line?!" Yes, you will be able to go on xbox live. A 3 month membership maybe handy for a trail for you to see how Xbox Live is like & whether or not you want it or not.

XBOX WIRELESS CONTROLLER - "It's got batteries? Will they run out...why don't i have the bastarding option of getting one WITH cables in this box?!" The Wireless Controller takes x2 AA batteries, but you can buy a rechargeable battery pack, so there will be no need to keep changing batteries.

XBOX WIRELESS HEADSET - "WTF am i gonna do with a headset?!" The Wireless Headset is only for Xbox live. You can use the headset to talk to people that you are playing against or if you are talking to a friend over chat service.

XBOX 20 GIG HARD DRIVE - "20 GIG? Is that gonna be way too much? This other one has only got a few hundred mb hard drive...why would i need 20 gig?" 20GB Hardrive is the smallest size drive available that you can get. If you are going online & purchasing HD Movie Trailers, Game Demo's, Multiplayer content (like Maps, weapons, item etc) It will soon fill up.

XBOX LIVE VISION CAMERA - "f*** off! A webcam, is that? I'm playing games, am i really gonna be wanting to see pictures of who i'm playing in the bottom of my screen?!" This is a personal preference. You will need a Gold Account for this. You can talk to people via Video Chat & Messaging. This will also feature "face in game" technology - add your face to your character in-game. (This only works with the games that supports this feature)

XBOX UNIVERSAL MEDIA REMOTE - "Oh good. I can turn my tele on and off with another remote control."

These things go on forever.
Guys, i really need your help.
I mean, do i want to go online and play games?
How do i know what the best system is. This has all changed and i'd love it if someone could simplify things for me.

Please... [/b]

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I have tried to answer you questions. Below are some useful links to try & help you decide on which version (Core or Premiem) to buy

Personally, The Premiem System is the best in the long run.
* It has all the accessories needed to get you on Xbox Live & Hi Defintaion
* The Core System is the basic version, should you need to buy all the accessories that are included with the Premiem version in the future, it will cost you more than buying a Premiem version from the beginning.
If you have no intention of getting a HD tele, downloading Game demo's etc, then the Core system will be suited to you needs.

Wow, guys you have been so helpful.
I now actually know what i need to buy that will be appropriate for me and I know what a lot of the features do.
THis has been very helpful becuase i couldn't quite believe how different it is to when i bought a ps2 and i can't believe how much research i have had to do to locate the xbox for me.
But it's a fair bit of money that i'm looking to spend and thanks to your help i am confident in my very-near-future purchase.
Plus, i wouldn't be paranoid that some salesman on commission is trying to wriggle as much cash out of me as possible.

One final question: has the xbox 360 elite been released in the uk yet?
That bugger's got a whopping 120g HD!

* A HDMI Port & Cable (You will be able to reach full 1080p HD, proving your TV supports it)
* All accessories are in black
* 120GB Hard Drive (You can also request a FREE transfer cable to migrate all the information from your 20GB Hard over to the 120GB

The Elite hasn't been announced when it's released in the UK yet, nor have they released the price for it yet.

If you want to know about Xbox Live go and have a look on Xbox site. Here it will tell you more in-depth about Xbox Gold & Silver accounts & it will tell you how to connect to Xbox Live.

Just a side note, Xbox live Gold over 12 months requires payment via a Credit Card only. They do not accept Debit Cards, or any other form of payment. There is a way around this though, you can buy a 12 month subscription card which costs less than using Credit Card. You have to pay VAT on top of Â£39.99, but buy a 12 month subscription card off someone like Play its only Â£34.99 with FREE delivery. With this card, you get 200 game points (I'll get to that below). If you don't think that you want 12 month subscription, you can also buy a 3 month Gold subscription card off Play for Â£12.99.

If you are wondering about game points I will explain it to you. Game Points is a system that game manufactures use to award you points when you play on game. This is known as Achievement points. These points are award to you when you complete certain tasks (Like completing a game, play a game for 'x' amount of hours etc) These points vary (some will only be 10G, some could be 200G) Its all down to the difficulty of a certain achievement.

When you get enough game points, you can go on Xbox Live marketplace & purchase content that you would normally pay for. For example there is 'Call of Duty 3' Map Pack on Xbox Live Marketplace for 800 Game Points. Just build up you gamer points then use those points to download content that isn't free. The problem with building up your gamer points is that, it will take you ages to get a decent amount of points, but if you can't be bothered to try the hard way, you can purchase 2100 gamer points from a retailer like Play for Â£16.99.

Go here for an overview of Gamer points & it also shows some of the content you can purchase on Xbox Live Marketplace that is available now.